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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, Ju ly 15 ,2 02 1 | 18 $5 Digital Fringe Backer 'Button' required to access ticketed events. HAMILTON FRINGE FESTIVAL 2021 JULY 14-25 LIVE & ONLINE 12 DAYS 30+ SHOWS HAMILTONFRINGE.C 289-698-2234 BOOK NOW CA FEATURING Theatre On Demand Family Fringe On Demand Digital Exclusives Bring Your Own Virtual Venue Skip The Glitches Fringe All-Access Digital Fringe Club Licensed Fringe Club Patio Kids Club Camp Despite suggesting nu- merous times the province would not be rushing into Step 3 of its reopening plan due to concerns over the Delta variant, the Ministry of Health has confirmed Ontario will enter into Step 3 on July 16 -- five days ear- lier than expected. Earlier this month, when asked about the possi- bility of beginning the third and final step of the reopen- ing process prior to the date initially planned, Health Minister Christine Elliott said, "We have just recently moved into Step 2 and, as you know, the Delta variant is still out there. It is still very active, and that is why we really need to take a very cautious approach to opening up further." She added that the de- tails regarding Step 3 of re- opening would be released "well in advance," to give businesses the necessary time to prepare. On July 9, the province announced it will be mov- ing into Step 3 as of 12:01 a.m. on Friday, July 16. Here's what will be per- mitted: • Outdoor social gather- ings and events will be per- mitted with up to 100 people. • Indoor social gather- ings and events will be per- mitted with up to 25 people. • Indoor religious servic- es, rites and ceremonies will be allowed (with phys- ical distancing in place). • Indoor dining will re- sume with no seating limits per table (physical distanc- ing will remain in effect). • Indoor sports and rec- reational fitness facilities will resume at 50-per-cent capacity. (The capacity for indoor spectators will be ei- ther 50 per cent of the usual capacity or a maximum of 1,000 people. The capacity for outdoor spectators will be 75 per cent of the usual capacity or a maximum of 15,000 people.) • Indoor meeting and event spaces will be permit- ted to operate at 50-per-cent capacity or 1,000 people (with physical distancing in place). • Essential and non-es- sential retail will continue to operate with capacity limits. • Personal care services will be permitted, including those that require the re- moval of face masks (capac- ity will be limited to the number of people that can maintain two metres of dis- tance). • Museums, galleries, historic sites, aquariums, zoos, landmarks, botanical gardens, science centres, casinos, bingo halls, amuse- ment parks, fairs, rural ex- hibitions and festivals will resume, with capacity lim- ited to 50 per cent indoors and 75 per cent outdoors. • Concert venues, cine- mas, and theatres will be permitted to operate at up to 50-per-cent capacity in- doors or a maximum limit of 1,000 people. These ven- ues will be permitted to op- erate at up to 75-per-cent ca- pacity outdoors or a maxi- mum of 5,000 people for un- seated events, and up to 75-per-cent capacity out- doors or a maximum of 15,000 people for seated events. • Real-estate open hous- es will resume with physi- cal distancing in place. • Nightclubs, lounges and restobars will reopen at 25-per-cent capacity or up to 250 people maximum. When asked about the decision to move up the start date of Step 3, the province's chief medical of- ficer of health, Dr. Kieran Moore, said, "I didn't see any reason to hold us back given that so many Ontari- ans have come forward -- over 200,000 a day are com- ing forward -- to get immu- nized." Moore said, as of July 9, 78.9 per cent of Ontario adults have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vac- cine and 52.7 per cent have received their second dose, adding that the rate of sec- ond doses goes up by almost 10 per cent each week. The criteria to move into Step 3 includes having 70 to 80 per cent of adults vacci- nated with one dose of a CO- VID-19 vaccine and 25 per cent vaccinated with two doses. It is also required that the province sees improve- ments in other public health indicators, such as hospital and ICU capacities. "The number of people in our intensive care units is also trending in the right direction," Moore said, not- ing the province will re- main in Step 3 for a mini- mum of 21 days. ONTARIO MOVES INTO STEP 3 OF REOPENING EARLY Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott. Graeme Frisque/Metroland VERONICA APPIA vappia@toronto.com NEWS